Crimes against America's homeless : is the violence growing? : hearing before the Subcommittee on Crime and Drugs of the Committee on the Judiciary, United States Senate, One Hundred Eleventh Congress, second session, September 29, 2010.

Eleven-year-old Lisa becomes her mother’s primary support when they face the prospect of homelessness. As Dee, a single mother, struggles with the demons of her own childhood of neglect and abuse, Lisa has to quickly assume the role of an adult in an attempt to keep some stability in their lives. “Dee and Tiny” ultimately become underground celebrities in San Francisco, squatting in storefronts and performing the “art of homelessness.” Their story, filled with black humor and incisive analysis, illuminates the roots of poverty, the criminalization of poor families, and their struggle for survival.

The United States Government Printing Office (GPO) was created in June 1860, and is an agency of the U.S. federal government based in Washington D.C. The office prints documents produced by and for the federal government, including Congress, the Supreme Court, the Executive Office of the President and other executive departments, and independent agencies. A hearing is a meeting of the Senate, House, joint or certain Government committee that is open to the public so that they can listen in on the opinions of the legislation. Hearings can also be held to explore certain topics or a current issue. It typically takes between two months up to two years to be published. This is one of those hearings.

Hundreds of thousands of Americans are without a home, sleeping on streets or in temporary shelters. Nearly one-fifth of homeless Americans suffer from an untreated mental illness. Due in part to reductions in state and city budgets, many who need assistance are left to live on the street. One natural byproduct of a life on the street is criminal behavior, as adaptation to illegal acts becomes a matter of survival. Could ending homelessness reduce crime? What are ways in which that could be achieved, and whose responsibility is it? Are the homeless being unfairly blamed for street crime? This volume offers a close examination of the issue from a variety of viewpoints.